Chapter 14: First Faction |
All camps around Redwood Ridge followed an unwritten rule.
If someone hadn't broken through to the Lumberjack Realm by age twenty-five, their training value became minimal.
This didn't mean those over twenty-five had no hope, but their potential would rapidly decline past that age. The same resources invested would yield smaller gains compared to those under twenty-five.
These so-called resources, of course, referred to Frost Beast flesh.
Xia Hong recognized this convention was clearly built upon resource scarcity.
Before encountering Frost Beasts, he hadn't understood.
But after venturing out and witnessing the ferocity of Frost Wolves and Snow Manes, he realized how precious every pound of Frost Beast flesh was for these weak camps around Redwood Ridge - resources had to be maximized.
This was especially true for Great Xia Camp.
Concentrating resources to help a select few break through first meant more members could eventually venture out, bringing back more resources to strengthen others, allowing the camp's overall power to grow rapidly.
Xia Hong first distributed one pound of meat to each of the twenty-two participants.
One pound of Frost Beast flesh couldn't sustain cultivation, but it could quickly satiate them and unleash their maximum basic strength.
The twenty-two who ate soon had rosy complexions, their previous withered appearances completely transformed - a stark contrast to the hundred-plus who hadn't received Frost Beast flesh.
Xia Hong delegated the competition supervision to Xia Chuan and Yuan Cheng, while he seized time to eat Frost Beast flesh and cultivate.
The tragic defeat of Boulder Camp and the Frost Beasts' terror filled him with urgency.
Boulder Camp had sixteen Lumberjack-level fighters, including two master archers. Yet even with such formidable forces, they'd failed to hunt a low-level Frost Beast and lost three lives.
Though partly due to their carelessness, the Frost Beasts' formidable strength and cunning nature were undeniable facts.
Xia Hong estimated that Snow Mane's charging force before death approached ten thousand pounds.
Ten thousand pounds of force was the benchmark for Earth Digger-level strength.
Among all camps around Redwood Ridge, besides Rogge Camp, only Iron Peak Camp's leader Iron Eagle had reached Earth Digger level.
Xia Hong lowered his gaze to the cave floor, steadied his breathing, clenched his fists, and suddenly smashed them downward.
Boom...
Despite his current five-thousand-pound strength, the impact produced only a modest sound.
The ground remained unmoved, with only some dust disturbed near his fists.
The so-called Earth Digger Realm meant practitioners at this level could use brute force to break ground and extract underground resources.
Years of extreme cold had hardened all land tremendously, especially this stone-filled cave.
"Survival difficulty here is truly hellish!"
The hardened earth meant no farming.
Humans could only rely on trees like crystal fruit trees that bore fruit in extreme cold.
Could those trees be transplanted to camp as crops?
Xia Hong had asked Xia Ding this before.
The answer was no.
Those trees required sunlight to grow.
Sunlight only came during daytime, but daytime's low temperatures were lethal to humans.
Moreover, Frost Beasts ranged farther and grew more violent during daytime, not to mention the ever-present threat of Abominations.
Years ago, Rogge Camp attempted transplanting crystal fruit trees near their cave.
Within days, the trees attracted hordes of Frost Beasts, causing heavy casualties.
People then discovered Frost Beasts would eat the crystalline fruits when prey was scarce.
Thus transplanting became virtually impossible.
"Not necessarily," Xia Hong mused. "If a camp were strong enough to withstand Frost Beasts, transplanting trees closer might work."
Great Xia Camp was obviously far from that standard now - just wishful thinking.
Despite his wandering thoughts, Xia Hong continued cultivating.
After four sets of Long Fist, his animal hide clothing soaked with sweat, he finally dissipated the burning sensation from the ingested Frost Beast flesh.
Clenching his fist slightly to gauge his strength increase, Xia Hong frowned.
"After breaking through to Lumberjack Realm, my Frost Beast flesh capacity increased by two pounds - seven pounds daily now. But the efficiency seems slower."
Progress always grows harder at higher levels - an objective law.
Xia Hong didn't dwell on it. As he finished cultivation, Yuan Cheng and Xia Chuan approached with five others.
"Yue Feng, Lin Kai, Qiu Peng, Lu Yang... Xu Ning."
With one glance, Xia Hong silently recited all five names.
Only at Xu Ning did he pause slightly.
Among the camp's hundred-plus people, only about twenty were similar-aged, all known to Xia Chuan.
The results weren't surprising.
Xia Hong knew descendants of former lumberjack team members would dominate.
Simple reason: unlike others, they'd previously received Frost Beast flesh, giving them a strength foundation.
The outcome confirmed this.
Yue Feng was son of former lumberjack Yue Fan, Lin Kai was Lin Yu's son, Qiu Peng's father was Great Xia's sole archer Qiu Ping, and Lu Yang was Lu Ting's son.
Only Xu Ning among the five wasn't a lumberjack team descendant - hence Xia Hong's pause.
Without prior Frost Beast flesh consumption or cultivation, reaching top five was impressive!
Xia Hong turned to Yuan Cheng: "Their strength measurements?"
"Yue Feng exactly 2000, Lin Kai 1800, Qiu Peng 1700, Lu Yang 1500, Xu Ning 1100."
Xia Hong's eyes brightened looking at Xu Ning.
First-time Frost Beast flesh consumption couldn't provide massive boosts - meaning Xu Ning's base strength was remarkable.
"This kid might surprise me."
The clearly insecure Xu Ning grew nervous under Xia Hong's gaze, his expression faltering.
Xia Hong understood - being the only non-lumberjack descendant among five, plus his strength gap, made insecurity natural at this age.
So he stopped singling Xu Ning out, instead retrieving five pre-portioned Frost Beast flesh pieces.
"Starting today, I'll teach you Long Fist daily. Traditional Frost Beast flesh absorption methods would only let you process half-pound daily at most in your current states.
Long Fist improves absorption efficiency and accelerates strength growth. So learn carefully if you want rapid improvement.
Next Frost Beast flesh distribution will follow the same principle - those closest to Lumberjack Realm get more. Understood?"
The five received their portions eagerly. At Xia Hong's instructions, they all looked up solemnly, answering in unison:
"Yes, Leader!"
Remembering Boulder Camp's fighters, Xia Hong observed his five recruits. Though the gap remained vast, he felt some confidence.
Over ten days had passed since the lumberjack team's annihilation.
Finally, this leader had his first small faction.
Great Xia Camp was gradually recovering.